Travel+Leisure is holding a cocktail competition, and you’re invited.

What they are looking for, is an original cocktail recipe which features Grand Marnier, with the winner winning a trip to the Bahamas.

The submitted recipes will be narrowed down to 10 semi-finalists, at which time the readers of Travel+Leisure will vote to select the top three cocktails. These finalists will be flown to Beverly Hills in December of 2008 to compete for the grand prize trip to the Bahamas. Judging this final round will be Dale DeGroff, Tony Abou-Ganim, Jim Meehan, and Eben Freeman.

Don’t delay! Go to www.beverageartschallenge.com now and submit your recipe! Submissions must be received by August 25th.

Reuters:
New Orleans museum exalts the art of the cocktail.
Ted Haigh was fascinated by Hollywood's portrayal of cocktail culture even when he was well shy of legal drinking age. (more...)

Washington Post:
'Cocktail Geeks' to the Rescue.
The sixth annual Tales of the Cocktail, held here last weekend, was a mix of academic conference, trade show and, as one bar owner called it, "Star Trek convention for cocktail geeks." (more...)

New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Mastering Tales of the Cocktail with a clear head.
So many seminars, so little time. So many sips, so little capacity.(more...)

New York Times:
In the Big Easy, two cocktails reign.
I’VE been leafing through a bunch of cocktail manuals recently. Aside from the vicarious pleasure, I’ve been trying to figure out the logic of the Louisiana legislature, which, apparently having finished its work with the Hurricane Katrina cleanup, has moved on to the pressing business of selecting an official cocktail for the city of New Orleans. (more...)

Chicago Sun-Times:
Summer sippers.
Your home garden holds the makings for some tasty seasonal drinks (more...)

Chicago Herald :
Shake things up with a Raleigh Collins.
Michael Waterhouse, of Manhattan's Devin Tavern, concocts a summer sipper (more...)

Chicago Tribune:
Museum raises glass to the cocktail
Buzz about the grand opening of the Museum of the American Cocktail space in New Orleans ramps up. (more...)

ABC News :
More coverage of the Museum's opening.
In New Orleans, cocktails are serious business. What better town for a temple to the tasty history of the American libation? Many outsiders may get their idea of the Big Easy's cocktail culture from the jumbo-sized plastic cups of punch slugged down by tourists on Bourbon Street. But the Museum of the American Cocktail opening in July will focus on the rich history of sophisticated drinks that have been served since Thomas Jefferson was president. (more...)

Washington Post :
I'll take Manhattan.
H.L. Mencken famously called the martini "the only American invention as perfect as the sonnet." The sonnet, as anyone who took freshman English may remember, is a poem with a specific meter, a structure of exactly 14 lines and a strict rhyme scheme. This being the age of free verse, no one writes sonnets anymore. Which is just as well, since almost no one reads poetry anymore. (more...)

San Francisco Chronicle:
Readers' Platform: The cocktail divide.
The June 27 Wine section cover story, "The cocktail divide," started a vibrant discussion about cocktails on the comments of the article online. Here's a selection: (more...)

Hartford Advocate:
Bartender Buddha.
A few questions for Connecticut bartender Jennie Lackey. (more...)